Japan's Prisoners of Conscience

Protest and Law During the Iraq War

Lawrence Repeta

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2022
• ISBN:
  9781000789942
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Law
• Subtopic: Law Theory & Practice
• Index: Law

This book is a narrative account of the criminal prosecution of three peaceful protesters in Japan during the Iraq War that tells the inside story of their arrests and trial and examines the larger issues raised by the case.

Based on interviews with defendants, lawyers, and eyewitnesses and other Japanese language sources, the book carries rich descriptions of the individuals at the heart of the story, including the charismatic leader of the "Tachikawa Tent Village" who has been protesting since U.S. military forces were stationed in her hometown in the early postwar era. Authored by an attorney who has researched and written on Japanese legal issues for more than three decades and was the plaintiff in a suit that made constitutional history by opening Japan's courts to free reporting, this book offers expert insights into the forces that affect the right to freedom of political speech in Japan.

Illustrating the sharp political conflict that has deeply affected Japan's defense policy for decades, this book will be of great interest to scholars and students of Comparative Law, Peace Studies, Japanese Society, and Modern Asian History.

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half-Title
• Endorsements
• Title
• Copyright
• Dedication
• Contents
• Acknowledgments
• Figures
• Introduction
• A Note on Stylistic Conventions
• Acronyms
• Prologue: The Prime Minister Speaks (December 2003)
• 1 “Raise your voices with us!”: (1945–2004)
• 2 Police Investigate the “True Nature” of Tent Village: (February–March 2004)
• 3 Another Arrest: (March 3, 2004)
• 4 Recruiting a Defense Team: (February–March 2004)
• 5 Japan’s First “Prisoners of Conscience” (March 2004)
• 6 Preparing for Trial: (March 23–April 25, 2004)
• 7 Trial at Hachioji: The First Court Hearing: (May 6, 2004)
• 8 An Undercover Investigation: (July 20, 2004)
• 9 Trial at Hachioji: The Government Case: (June–July 2004)
• 10 Trial at Hachioji: Defense Witnesses: (September 2004)
• 11 Trial at Hachioji: Final Testimony and Closing Arguments: (September–November 2004)
• 12 Judgment Day: (December 16, 2004)
• 13 It’s Not Over: (December 2004–Summer 2005)
• 14 Court Judgments in 2005 and 2006
• 15 Tent Village Arrives at the “Stone Fortress”: (2005–2008)
• 16 The Supreme Court Decides the Arakawa and Horikoshi Cases: (2009–2012)
• Conclusion: Dissent in Wartime
• Chronology
• A Note on Sources
• Notes
• Bibliography
• Index